When using ODK Agregate is there a way of updating a Form's version (when
you have made changes and edits to it) without first deleting the existing
form and all its data?
☞§※☼:airplane:
~Neil
Neil,
You can make some updates without deleting first. Here is our help topic on
that subject:
How do I update an existing survey form?
Once you have uploaded a form to the server, there are two kind of updates
you might want to make:
- You might want to make a database-neutral update that does not
affect the structure of the form's data. This kind of update might change a
label, a translation, a skip pattern, some field validation, or even the
lists of options available for multiple-choice questions. So long as no
questions are added or removed, no questions change "type," and the form's
title, ID, and encryption settings remain unchanged, the change is
database-neutral. - Or, you might want to make a change that affects the structure of the
form's data. This kind of change might involve adding or removing a
question, changing the "type" of a question, or changing the form's title,
ID, or encryption settings.
Database-neutral changes can be made with minimal disruption: even when the
form has been deployed and surveyors are actively collecting data,
database-neutral updates can be propagated. The sequence is as follows:
- Update the form definition's survey and choices worksheets as
desired.
2. Increase the version number on the settings worksheet. The
version has to be a single whole number, and the convention is to always
use a number that represents the current date and time (e.g., 2012102409
for 9AM on October 24, 2012). That way, you can always tell when the most
recent version was updated.
3. Upload the new version of the form definition to your server. (As
part of your upload, be sure to include any necessary media files
referenced by your form.)
4. Finally, to update any Android devices, select Delete Saved
Form from
the main Collect menu, switch to the Blank Forms tab, check the
form you have updated, and click Delete Selected. Then, go back to
the main menu, click Get Blank Form, and get the new version of the
form from the server.
Form changes that require changes to the form data structure follow a
similar process, but the old form needs to be fully deleted before the new
one can be put in place. This means that you first need to make sure that
all surveyors have uploaded all of their data, and that you have downloaded
and exported all of it. If you delete a form that is still in active use,
you can lose data.
Alternatively, you can update the form's title and ID and upload the new
version as, essentially, a new form. That way, you don't need to
immediately delete the old version -- and you can slowly phase out the old
version in favor of the new one. Once you are sure that the old one is no
longer being used (and all data has been downloaded, exported, and saved),
you can delete the old form.
Best,
Chris
···
On Wed, May 22, 2013 at 6:53 AM, Neil Hendrick wrote:When using ODK Agregate is there a way of updating a Form's version (when
you have made changes and edits to it) without first deleting the existing
form and all its data?☞§※☼:airplane:
~Neil--
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Thanks, this is a great help. You say this is from your "Help Topic". Are
you maintaining an online user guide for Aggregate? If so, where?
☞§※☼:airplane:
~Neil
···
On Wed, May 22, 2013 at 8:02 AM, Christopher Robert wrote:Neil,
You can make some updates without deleting first. Here is our help topic
on that subject:How do I update an existing survey form?
Once you have uploaded a form to the server, there are two kind of updates
you might want to make:
- You might want to make a database-neutral update that does not
affect the structure of the form's data. This kind of update might change a
label, a translation, a skip pattern, some field validation, or even the
lists of options available for multiple-choice questions. So long as no
questions are added or removed, no questions change "type," and the form's
title, ID, and encryption settings remain unchanged, the change is
database-neutral.- Or, you might want to make a change that affects the structure of
the form's data. This kind of change might involve adding or removing a
question, changing the "type" of a question, or changing the form's title,
ID, or encryption settings.Database-neutral changes can be made with minimal disruption: even when
the form has been deployed and surveyors are actively collecting data,
database-neutral updates can be propagated. The sequence is as follows:
- Update the form definition's survey and choices worksheets as
desired.
2. Increase the version number on the settings worksheet. The
version has to be a single whole number, and the convention is to always
use a number that represents the current date and time (e.g., 2012102409
for 9AM on October 24, 2012). That way, you can always tell when the most
recent version was updated.
3. Upload the new version of the form definition to your server. (As
part of your upload, be sure to include any necessary media files
referenced by your form.)
4. Finally, to update any Android devices, select *Delete Saved Form
- from the main Collect menu, switch to the Blank Forms tab,
check the form you have updated, and click Delete Selected. Then,
go back to the main menu, click Get Blank Form, and get the new
version of the form from the server.Form changes that require changes to the form data structure follow a
similar process, but the old form needs to be fully deleted before the new
one can be put in place. This means that you first need to make sure that
all surveyors have uploaded all of their data, and that you have downloaded
and exported all of it. If you delete a form that is still in active use,
you can lose data.Alternatively, you can update the form's title and ID and upload the new
version as, essentially, a new form. That way, you don't need to
immediately delete the old version -- and you can slowly phase out the old
version in favor of the new one. Once you are sure that the old one is no
longer being used (and all data has been downloaded, exported, and saved),
you can delete the old form.Best,
Chris
On Wed, May 22, 2013 at 6:53 AM, Neil Hendrick mojotexas@gmail.comwrote:
When using ODK Agregate is there a way of updating a Form's version (when
you have made changes and edits to it) without first deleting the existing
form and all its data?☞§※☼:airplane:
~Neil--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"ODK Developers" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
email to opendatakit-developers+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
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Hi Neil,
It's from the SurveyCTO help system. We have built a different UI for
Aggregate, but the underlying functionality remains largely the same in
areas like this (though, for example, on SurveyCTO as on formhub, you can
upload .xls files directly rather than converting them first).
The core ODK team also maintains help pages at www.opendatakit.org.
Best,
Chris
···
On Fri, May 24, 2013 at 4:20 PM, Neil Hendrick wrote:Thanks, this is a great help. You say this is from your "Help Topic". Are
you maintaining an online user guide for Aggregate? If so, where?☞§※☼:airplane:
~NeilOn Wed, May 22, 2013 at 8:02 AM, Christopher Robert <crobert@surveycto.com wrote:
Neil,
You can make some updates without deleting first. Here is our help topic
on that subject:How do I update an existing survey form?
Once you have uploaded a form to the server, there are two kind of
updates you might want to make:
- You might want to make a database-neutral update that does not
affect the structure of the form's data. This kind of update might change a
label, a translation, a skip pattern, some field validation, or even the
lists of options available for multiple-choice questions. So long as no
questions are added or removed, no questions change "type," and the form's
title, ID, and encryption settings remain unchanged, the change is
database-neutral.- Or, you might want to make a change that affects the structure of
the form's data. This kind of change might involve adding or removing a
question, changing the "type" of a question, or changing the form's title,
ID, or encryption settings.Database-neutral changes can be made with minimal disruption: even when
the form has been deployed and surveyors are actively collecting data,
database-neutral updates can be propagated. The sequence is as follows:
- Update the form definition's survey and choices worksheets as
desired.
2. Increase the version number on the settings worksheet. The
version has to be a single whole number, and the convention is to always
use a number that represents the current date and time (e.g.,
2012102409 for 9AM on October 24, 2012). That way, you can always
tell when the most recent version was updated.
3. Upload the new version of the form definition to your server. (As
part of your upload, be sure to include any necessary media files
referenced by your form.)
4. Finally, to update any Android devices, select Delete Saved
Form from the main Collect menu, switch to the Blank Forms tab,
check the form you have updated, and click Delete Selected.
Then, go back to the main menu, click Get Blank Form, and get
the new version of the form from the server.Form changes that require changes to the form data structure follow a
similar process, but the old form needs to be fully deleted before the new
one can be put in place. This means that you first need to make sure that
all surveyors have uploaded all of their data, and that you have downloaded
and exported all of it. If you delete a form that is still in active use,
you can lose data.Alternatively, you can update the form's title and ID and upload the new
version as, essentially, a new form. That way, you don't need to
immediately delete the old version -- and you can slowly phase out the old
version in favor of the new one. Once you are sure that the old one is no
longer being used (and all data has been downloaded, exported, and saved),
you can delete the old form.Best,
Chris
On Wed, May 22, 2013 at 6:53 AM, Neil Hendrick mojotexas@gmail.comwrote:
When using ODK Agregate is there a way of updating a Form's version
(when you have made changes and edits to it) without first deleting the
existing form and all its data?☞§※☼:airplane:
~Neil--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
Groups "ODK Developers" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send
an email to opendatakit-developers+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
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email to opendatakit-developers+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.--
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A post was split to a new topic: In Aggregate, do form version changes that don't affect the form structure affect data that was already collected?